Breaking Up The Hard Way
by BroodyBlondes4ever
Summary: Short angsty oneshot based off a poem. They were Tree Hill's 'it' couple, and now...much to everyone's dismay, they were over. Read and review please!


He walked through the door, his clothes neatly pressed. From a distance he looked like his usual self, he was the same boy everyone was used to seeing in the halls of Tree Hill High…the one that was always smiling…always having a good time. But as he passed by the people, got close enough for them to truly see his demeanor, they all noticed the bags under his eyes, his unruly hair and unshaven face. He had been this way since their breakup. Everyone had heard about it…it was the latest gossip and they all looked at him with pitying eyes. Every other word out of people's mouths seemed to be 'I'm sorry'. But what could he expect…they had become Tree Hill's 'it' couple, and now, much to everyone's dismay, they were over.

He approached her slowly, each step more hesitant than the last. Four days ago…that was the last time they spoke. She had gone to a party with her friends, the two girls that were to his right, carrying the same look as everyone else. He was supposed to be at that party, promised her he would escort her to the seniors' big blow out to bring in the New Year. But things came up, and she told him that family was important, that she would be fine without him…and so he kissed her goodbye and she went out with the girls instead. If only he knew then that the kiss would be their last, that the night would be the end of them. She had gotten drunk that night, and eventually got bored with the party scene. Another guy from the team offered to take her home. She looked around the room and found her ride dancing closely with her boyfriend…they were the other couple that people envied. She didn't want to be a bother and the alcohol was giving her more than a buzz, so she accepted the guys offer…and just like that their relationship was over.

Tears sprung to his eyes as he reached for her hand and pulled his class ring off her finger, and she did nothing to stop him. She had snatched the ring one night after they had made love. He watched her slip it on her finger and agreed when she smiled as declared that the ring looked much better on her, even if it didn't quite fit. She had worn it ever since that night, but now he took it back…it didn't belong to her anymore. It was an object he could easily retrieve…if only he could make her give his heart back as well.

He couldn't stop the memories from overtaking him. Images of their happier moments flashed through his head. Still frames of their time on the beach, walking hand in hand, guided solely by the light of the moon. They had laughed as they walked across the sand, letting the cool water rush in and quickly cover their feet before it receded back into the dark ocean where it had come from. He could recall the way the light reflected perfectly off her eyes when she turned to face him, he swore he could see into the depths of her soul in that moment…and he knew then that they would be together forever…that she would always be his.

But now her eyes were nothing but cold. He would never hold her again, never wrap his arms around her and rest his head atop hers. They would never again cuddle at night, living in their own perfect little world, seemingly untouched by everything around them. They had worked so hard to achieve that undeniable sense of comfort and now it was gone…thrown away the night she left that party with his teammate...a guy he always considered a friend.

Everyone watched in silence as the former couple spent their last moments together, preparing to go their separate ways. They watched him, watched the tears that slipped quietly down his cheeks. He leaned down, his lips grazing her hair before coming to rest near her ear. "I love you" he whispered the words and everyone waited, hoping that she would respond, saying something, anything to make all of this better, to make it all go away. But there was nothing to be said and as they expected, she didn't utter a thing, simply let him place his lips gently against her cheek, and then pull away. His hand gently caressed her face, the skin he had touched so many times before, but it was different now, because this time would be his last.

He turned away from her then, his head tilting back and his eyes closed as he tried to compose himself, tried to stop the moisture that was leaking from his eyes…he wouldn't do this now…not here…not in front of all of them. He slipped the ring on his finger, and in that moment he felt his heart shatter, felt it crumble within his chest. If he had been at that party, she would have gone home with him instead of his drunken teammate.

He started walking…moving away from her. His feet dragged slowly, a part of him desperately waiting for her to call out to him…to tell him that this wasn't how their relationship was going to end. He was waiting for her to run to him…to wrap her arms around him and tell him that her heart was his…that it always would be…that they would be together until the end of time. But as he approached the door and felt the cold wind rage around him, his dreams were crushed and he knew it wouldn't happen. They had broken up for good...she was never coming back to him.

**Close to the door**

**He paused to stand**

**As he took his class ring**

**Off her hand**

**All who were watching**

**Did not speak**

**As a silent tear**

**Ran down his cheek**

**And through his mind**

**The memories ran**

**Of the moments they walked**

**And laughed in the sand**

**But now her eyes were so terrible cold**

**For he would never again**

**Have her to hold**

**They watched in silence**

**As he bent near**

**And whispered the words...**

**"I LOVE YOU" in her ear**

**He touched her face and started to cry**

**As he put on his ring and wanted to die**

**And just then the wind began to blow**

**As they lowered her casket into the snow...**

**This is what happens**

**To man alive...**

**...when friends let friends**

**Drink and drive.**


End file.
